Naruto New Generation
by RoseAngelWriter
Summary: 18 years after the end of the fourth Shinobi War and Naruto's journey begins again when he agrees to become the Jonin Instructor for a new batch of genin. Meanwhile, his daughter starts her own journey to be coming a shinobi proving to everyone that's she's more than just the daughter of Konoha's hero. Behind the scenes, however, a dark sect threatens the peace of the ninja nations
1. Chapter 1: The begining

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** Hi! This is my first time writing a fanfiction after reading so manyxD. Reviews and constructive criticisms are always welcomed, but please try to be nice:P

**DISCLAIMER: **I do not own any Naruto characters...but all the ocs are mine and there's going to be quite a few xD.

Naruto Uzumaki was having a pleasant dream. Or, at least, he was...until he felt a heavy body collide with his stomach.

"Wake up daddy! Wake up!"

Naruto groaned in pain and blearily opened his eyes, a massive headache pounding his skull. The first thing he managed to see was a mass of blonde hair, as yellow as his own. A pair of bright green eyes peered at him.

"Come on daddy get up! We have to hurry or we'll be late!"

Naruto muttered something unintelligible and pulled his blanket back over his head only to have it yanked back down. There was a shift on the bed as his wife woke. Saiko, who had been lying next to him, yawned and opened her eyes revealing a matching set of green framed by her heart shaped face. She chuckled when she finally seemed to register what had woken her. "Aren't you getting a little too old for this, Natsuki?"

Natsuki turned away from Naruto and gave her mother a bright grin. "Nope, I'm never too old to annoy daddy."

A couple of seconds later, Naruto, who had closed his eyes, felt a wet cloth slap his face.

"Okay! Okay! I'm up!" Naruto growled. He caught the offending piece of cloth before it could hit his face again. His daughter let go of the cloth and immediately jumped off so he could get up. Naruto sighed and force himself out of the warm bed, rubbing his eyes as he did so. Natsuki smiled innocently up at him.

"So what's so important that you had to wake me up at…," Naruto glanced at the alarm on his desk. "…6:30 in the morning?"

"Have you forgotten daddy?" Natsuki pouted in a way that Naruto would normally have found adorable…if it wasn't 6:30 in morning. "Today's my first day as genin! We're supposed to meet at the Academy at 7:15!"

"What does that have to do with me?" Naruto glared at his daughter. The ringing in his head didn't help his mood in the least. "You're old enough to go to school on your own."

"Oh, daddy," Natsuki said in an exasperated manner all the while giving him an 'Are you an idiot?' look- the one she'd learned from her mother. Confused, Naruto turned to his grinning wife.

"What?"

Saiko gave him a smile that was one half amused one half sympathetic. "Sweetie…The new jonin instructors are supposed to meet today."

Naruto raised an eyebrow "So?"

"So…I clearly remember you promising Umino-san that you would be a jonin instructor"

It took a moment for his wife's words to register. When it did, Naruto's eyes widened.

"What are you talking about? I never said anything like that."

"Yes you did," Natsuki giggled. "We all heard you."

"But," Naruto sputtered. "I would never agree to something like that; I hate responsibility!"

Saiko tilted her head, her long dark hair falling over her shoulders. She leaned forward and rested her elbows on the bed, her head cupped in her hands. "Well, I suppose you we're rather drunk last night. Do you at least remember that we invited Umino-san and Hatake-san for dinner yesterday?"

"Of course I remember!" Naruto said indignantly. "I'm not dumb you know."

Saiko hummed. "Okay, well…after dinner, you _men_ insisted that we pull out the sake. Being the good and kind wife that I was, I agreed and did so after putting Takeru to bed. While I was entertaining Hatake-san, you, Natsuki, and Umino-san were having a chat."

"Yeah!" Natsuki beamed proudly. "Iruka-sensei was saying how proud you must be to have a daughter that graduated at the top of her class!"

"I think I remember that," Naruto grimaced. "And please stop yelling Suki-chan…you're hurting my head."

"Oh, sorry," Natsuki said sheepishly, twirling her hair.

Saiko chuckled. "I didn't hear much of your conversation with Umino-san, but I do remember at some point you stood on top of the dining table and swore you'd become a Jonin-Instructor. I believe you said something like, 'No worries Iruka, I'll help you! I'll be the best Jonin-Instrutor in the world! Believe it!' Then you proceeded to do a jig on the table,"

Naruto groaned and put his face in his hands. "Tell me I didn't"

"You did," Natsuki nodded trying, but failing to hide her grin. "It was a good one too. I kept thinking you would fall off the table, but you didn't."

"Yes, I never knew you had such amazing dancing skills, dear," Saiko said wryly.

"Alright, alright, enough teasing." Naruto growled. "Are you certain I promised to become a Jonin-Instructor? I was clearly drunk at the time. Surely Iruka knows anything I said was said because I was inebriated."

"No, you should have seen Iruka-sensei's face when you agreed to be this generation's Jonin-Instrutor." Natsuki recalled. "He was so relieved. Sensei was looking desperately for one more Jonin willing to train a new team of genins."

Naruto sighed. "And I suppose if I refuse now, I'll be the evil guy who breaks his heart,"

"And the hearts of the cute little genins who would be sent back to the academy if they don't have a trainer," his daughter added unnecessarily.

Naruto shot his twelve year old an irritated look. "And do you remember where the Jonin Instructors were supposed to meet?"

"Hokage's office 7:00 sharp," Natsuki chirped cheekily.

What time was it? 6:30? Naruto groaned.

"You're doing a good thing, honey," Saiko pushed herself up from her elbows and planted a kiss on his cheek. "Umino-san appreciates it. Look on the bright side…you may end up being the Jonin instructor for Natsuki's new team."

A look of horror crossed Natsuki's face. "Oh no! I had forgotten about that." She sent her father a pleading gaze. "Please tell me, you'll reject if you end up my instructor. Just tell the Hokage you want to switch. I'm sure Tsunade-sama would listen to you… if it's you."

Naruto pretended to be affronted, but there was no hiding the smirk on his face. "What are you saying Suki-chan? You don't want your old man to teach you his tricks? I'm hurt!"

Natsuki narrowed her eyes. "If you think…,"

"Okay, enough of this," Saiko said firmly. "Natsuki, you've got thirty minutes before you have to arrive at the Academy, you'd best get going."

"But mom…,"

"No, buts darling; Have you got everything?"

"Yes," Natsuki muttered.

"Kunais, shurikens, wires, your leaf forehead protector…"

Natsuki's eyes widened and she felt the top of her forehead. A blush crept on her cheeks. "I'll be right back," she said before dashing back to her room.

Naruto chuckled as he watched his daughter leave. "She may be top of her class, but she's still as scatter-brained as ever."

Saiko rolled her eyes. "I wonder where she got that from."

"Hey!"

"Naruto, you've got fifteen minutes to freshen yourself up, get dressed, prepare anything you need, and arrive at Hokage tower if you want to be on time. I hope you aren't planning to make the fifth Hokage wait."

Naruto pulled his wife to him, ignoring her cry of surprise and wrapped her snuggly in his arms. Before she could yell at him, Naruto pressed his lips to hers, enjoying the warmth of her mouth. When they finally parted, he gifted her with a confident grin. "Who do you think I am? I'm Naruto Uzumaki, shinobi extraordinaire, carrier of the nine-tails fox, defeater of Pein, hero of the Fourth Shinobi War, husband of the most beautiful woman in the word, and father to two annoying brats. With all that I've survived all little time pressure is nothing at all."

And with that said, Naruto stepped back and shunshined away. No doubt to the bathroom.


	2. Chapter 2: Some Old Faces and Memories

Naruto sighed in relief as he made it to the Hokage's tower in the nick of time. Contrary to what he had told Saiko, he had to really rush to be able to make it to Tsunade's office by 7:00. Why the hell did they have to meet so early in the morning anyway?

"Yo," Naruto said as he pushed open the door to the Hokage's office. He counted 6 people in the room not including Tsunade and Iruka. Three of whom he recognized.

"Cutting it close, aren't you Naruto?" The Hokage greeted. Despite being in her 70s, the Fifth Hokage still looked a young as when he'd first seen her 21 years ago; the same yellow pigtails, the same brown eyes, and the same giant bust. Naruto had to admit, that he was surprised her Henge was still active and strong despite her age. Then again, he'd thought she would've retire long before now.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Ha ha, sorry about that Tsunade-baachan."

"Don't worry about it, Naruto," Iruka said. The Fourth Shinobi War had taken its toll on Naruto's former mentor. His hair was now mostly gray, even though he was only in his forties, and he gained a new scar that started from just under his right eye to beyond his neck. "We're grateful you agreed to help,"

"I'm surprised you made it on time," A man with silver hair spoke up. His lower face was covered under a mask and his left eye covered by his leaf protector. In his hand was an orange book. Kakashi hadn't changed much since the last 18 years, but then again who knew how many wrinkles the man was hiding under his mask. "Considering how intoxicated you were last night, I thought you'd arrive by noon. Loved you're dance by the way."

"Not you too, Kakashi." Naruto groaned. "I've heard enough about it from my girls,"

Kakashi chuckled. "It _was_ quite a sight. Oh and give Saiko-chan my thanks for the meal. It was delicious."

"Yeah, yeah… Hey Hinata!"

"Hello Naruto-kun," Hinata smiled at him. Gone were all the traces of awkwardness she had as child. In its place was a gentle confidence that reflected her true self. Confidence gained through knowledge and trust of her own strength and worth. _And she'd only grown more beautiful with age _Naruto thought. Hinata's blue hair had grown even longer than when she was 16 she had taken to tying it in a loose ponytail. Her pale pupil-less eyes only added to her mysterious allure. Not that he thought any woman was more beautiful than his wife, of course_. _Saiko would filet him if he thought otherwise.

"I didn't expect to see you here," Naruto told Hinata. "Not that there's anything wrong with you being a Jonin Instructor. I just never took you for the type to enjoy such things."

"Hanabi's got her duties as clan head and my husband is away on a mission. Since I had a lot of time on my hands I figured I could help Iruka-san."

That sounded like Hinata. Always willing to help.

"Naruto! It's been a while!"

Naruto turned just in time to be engulfed in a crushing, but manly hug. Guy's bowl cut hair was peppered with gray and he had deep lines of age on his face, but the old man was still as fit as he always was, if the hard muscles Naruto felt were anything to go by. The green clad shinobi backed away and offered his usual nice guy pose.

"You look as youthful as ever." Guy beamed at him in a way that Naruto found slightly creepy. "I'm glad to see you haven't neglected your training"

"All right, enough greetings." Tsunade interrupted. "We can go on with Introductions later. Let's get this meeting started."

Naruto blinked in surprise. "What? Right now? Shouldn't we wait for the other jonins to arrive first?"

"They are taking an awfully long time," A woman he didn't recognize added. She had short orange hair that framed her cute face. When Naruto said cute he hadn't meant cute as in pretty. He meant cute as in he couldn't believe she was older than 16 cute. She was short too, barely reaching above his shoulders. Of course, Naruto theorized, there was always a possibility that she was 16. After all, Neji had been a jonin at 16. "Punctuality is important for a shinobi."

"Um," Kakashi coughed, facing his new and less experienced coworkers. "There are no other jonin,"

"What?!" Five jonins in the room shout simultaneously. The only two jonins who hadn't shouted in the room were Kakashi Hatake and Maito Guy.

"It's exactly as Kakashi said," Tsunade said irritably. "There are no other instructor jonins for this batch of graduates."

There was silence in room. Then Naruto spoke up. "But there must be like a hundred graduates. Surely you don't expect us to take 15 each or something."

"Actually there are 147 graduates," Iruka corrected.

"Like that's going to make a difference," An unknown jonin snorted. He had a narrow face, a sharp nose, and eyes like a hawk. Long spiky brown hair stood straight as if defying gravity and he wore a blade against his back. His hair made him the tallest Jonin in the room. "It still stands that we can't realistically train so many genin into talented shinobi at the same time."

"I agree," Another jonin said. This one was skinner than the previous. He had droopy eyes and wore brown rimmed glasses. While he also had brown hair it was slightly darker than the swordsman's. Naruto thought he recognized the guy, but he couldn't quite place the face. "Increasing the number of shinobi in a team will only decrease the quality of developing shinobi."

"We aren't changing the three celled teams," Tsunade reassured. "That rule has been in place since my grandfather was Hokage and I have no plans to change it."

"Does that mean that only 21 of the 147 graduates will actually become genins?" Hinata asked quietly.

Tsunade nodded. "Unfortunately times are changing. Most of the jonins that took in last year's batch are too busy training their own genin to work with new ones. At the moment there are too many genins and not enough Jonins. We'd also lost a good number of Jonins during Fourth Shinobi War and the newer ones don't have enough experience to take care of genins."

Naruto's fist clenched as his mind flashed to the memory of a 17 year old Neji dying to protect him and Hinata. The sight of that projectile piercing Neji's flesh had been as painful as if it were his own.

"As of now, you 7 are the only Jonins willing to be genin instructors. Of you 7 only two have actually experience in training genins: Maito Guy and Hatake Kakashi. If you need any pointers they'll be more than willing to give advice."

"Yo," Kakashi greeted, not looking away from his orange book.

Maito Guy, however, was not quite so reserved. He gave them a thumbs up sign and smiled widely in a way that made his teeth shine. "I'll be more than willing to help youngsters fan the Flame of Youth!"

"Now Iruka will go over what's planned for choosing the 21 new genins," Tsunade concluded.

Iruka handed out the folders he had been holding to the jonins. Naruto took his and flipped through the pages, seeing names and faces of children he didn't recognize.

"These folders contain files of the academy graduates that you will be in charge of. We would normally divide each academy graduate into teams and then assign one Jonin to test each team. However, since there are not enough Jonins to do so, each of you will be in charge of testing all twenty-one graduates. Of the 21 you can only pass up to 3 and these genins will be your chosen team. You may test them in any way you deem fit, at any time you deem fit, and for any duration until you deem them as satisfactory genin. Just be sure to report to Tsunade-sama with your chosen genin."

"So basically we've got free reign to do what we want," Naruto grinned.

"Yes," Iruka rolled his eyes. "But please try to refrain from traumatizing them too badly. I'm the one who'll have to deal with them when they get sent back to the Academy."

Naruto chuckled and tucked the folder under his armpit. "Gotcha,"

"Any more questions?" Tsunade asked.

The room was silent.

"Alright, dismissed!"

There was a chorus of 'Hai, Hokage-sama' before all the jonin in the room disappeared in a whirl of leaves.

* * *

Naruto sighed as he flipped through the folder, reading details of every academy graduate he was in charge of. And of these 21 youngsters he was only allowed to pass three. It was like kicking innocent puppies. He remembered all the effort and hard work it had taken to him to become a genin. Naruto suppose he could just pick the three top graduates in his charge and be done with it, but a top scorer does not guarantee a quality genin. Especially since even a dead last could still be genin material. Kami, this was hopeless.

"A ryo for your thoughts," Kakashi said as he sat down next to Naruto, placing his tray on the long dining table. The Instructor Dining Hall was a lot nicer than the Student one that Naruto remembered in his youth.

"Just wondering how the hell I'm going to test them," Naruto said waving at the folder that was splayed open on the table. "There's just so many. I was thinking I'd have only three to deal with and I could just pass them all. Now I have twenty one. And 18 of them will be sent back."

"Ah…having trouble failing kids?"

Naruto grumbled under his breath. Kakashi broke his chopsticks and put his hands in a prayer sign. "Itadakimasu."

Naruto watched curiously as Kakashi lifted the chopstick with rice closer and closer to his mouth. Then in flash the rice was gone. Naruto blinked. He hadn't even seen Kakashi take his mask off. Naruto watch incredulously as the rice began to disappear as if magic. Every time the rice got near Kakashi's mask there would be a flash of movement and the rice would be gone. No matter how hard he watched he could never see Kakashi lift his mask.

"Damn…how do you do that?"

"Practice," Kakashi answered when all his rice was gone. "Lots of practice,"

Kakashi looked pointedly at the still full ramen bowl. "You must be stressed if you can't eat ramen. Luckily for me, I'm used to failing students."

Naruto chuckled. "You think I could use the bell test?"

"You could," Kakashi conceded. "After all, it has been a long time tradition that started with the Third Hokage. But I wouldn't advise it."

"Why not?"

Kakashi had to actually ponder this question. "I've known you for years, Naruto and what I've come to realize about you is you do things your own way. You follow your own path and reap your own consequences, but you never look back. That's one of your best qualities. I don't think you should change how you've always done things and follow someone else's agenda."

"But what if I don't have an agenda,"

"What qualities do you value in a shinobi? For me, it has always been loyalty to ones comrades. I valued teamwork and camaraderie above all else. That's why I use the bell test. What about you, Naruto? What do you value?"

Naruto didn't answer, but Kakashi could tell he was thinking. Kakashi liked watching Naruto think. He liked watching the way his former student would stand up and pace like a wild animal just like he was doing now. Then when he'd finally come up with a revelation Naruto's eyes would flash a brilliant blue, that reminded him so much of his former mentor. Kakashi would never admit it to him, but he was proud of the man that Naruto had become. The younger man was often obvious with what he was thinking, his thoughts clearly reflected in his eyes, but sometimes, especially in combat, Kakashi doubted he would be able to understand what went on in Naruto's mind. Naruto's thoughts and actions showed how deceptive and unpredictable Konoha's number one knuckle headed ninja really was.

"Besides, it doesn't look like the bell test is actually that effective at choosing groups with the best teamwork," Kakashi joked. "I almost think the test is cursed."

"What do you mean?" Naruto looked up.

"If you think about it, Orochimaru betrayed his teammates even though they'd shown teamwork in the bell test. Both members of team Namikaze betrayed their team members, despite taking the bell test. Even Sasuke raised his chidori against his teammate despite haven taken the bell test."

Naruto gave his former mentor a hard look. "It's just a string of coincidences."

"Oh, I know," Kakashi chuckled, but there was a tinge of bitterness in his voice.

Naruto knew Kakashi had blamed himself the most since Sasuke's death. Seeing Sasuke get stabbed by Obito through the chest and pushed off the cliff had been horrifying. It was probably even more horrifying for Kakashi since it was Kakashi's former teammate that killed his former student. Naruto and Kakashi had spent days after the final battle looking for Sasuke, but not a trace of him had been found; No blood, not even a body. They had hoped that it meant Sasuke was still alive somewhere, but it's been 18 years and there was still no sign of Sasuke.

Life went on since then. Naruto met the love of his life at the age of 18 and four years later they married. It was ironic that the happiest day of his life was the day that ended his dream of becoming Hokage. As he looked as his daughter's pink face he knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with his family. He couldn't do that if he was the Hokage. If he was Hokage, there would always be threats. Naruto had wanted to be Hokage to gain acknowledgement and a family he never had. As cliché as it sounded, he had just wanted to be loved. The Hokage's family was the entire village and Naruto, in his youth, had thought that a wonderful idea—to have the whole village as a family. It wasn't until his daughter was born that Naruto realized he had everything he could ever want…family and friends. It was then that he'd realized that he didn't need to be Hokage to protect them. He only needed to be near them. It wasn't a family given to him by birth, but a family he created with the people he loved…and that was enough.

Naruto sat back down "Itadakimasu,"

He broke apart his chopsticks and began slurping down his ramen. All that thinking made him hungry.

"Finally feeling hungry?"

Naruto swallowed the noodle. "Yeah. What were you doing while I was here?"

"Well, unlike you, I've already decided to do the bell test." Naruto raised an eyebrow and Kakashi replied with a grin. "I just needed to prepare some changes to accommodate more people. I'm ready to meet them and start their test right after lunch."

"Already? Don't you think you should give them time to prepare?"

Kakashi shrugged. "The sooner we get this done the better,"

"You sure you don't just want to see them throw up?"

Kakashi smirked.

* * *

**Note: **Next chapter a lot of new ocs will be introduced and Natsuki's POV starts.


	3. Chapter 3: Natsuki Uzumaki

Natsuki made her way back to the classroom, feeling much better now than she had before lunch. She had thought that today would be the start of her new kunoichi life. Instead, all Ruri-sensei did was lecture about Shinobi conduct. As if they hadn't heard all that before. And just to make things even more boring, Ruri-sensei had them practice kunai-throwing-like they'd done when they were eight. Natsuki was proud she'd manage to restrain herself from chucking the kunai at Ruri-sensei's head. Though she wasn't sure which irked her more—Ruri sensei's tediousness or some of her classmates' inability to throw a kunai straight.

Needless to say she was grateful when Iruka-sensei finally returned. At least until Iruka dropped the bombshell. Instead of dividing the genins into teams, like her dad often told her about in his stories, they were going to have one final exam. Since there weren't enough jonins to go around, they were going to be divided among the 7 jonin and these 7 jonin were going to pick among three among them. The ones who don't get chosen would stay at the academy until next year when they hopefully get new batch of Jonin. That meant of the 147 students who graduated the academy(she had counted them when she first got into the room), only 21 graduates would become genin. That meant that she had less than 15% chance of being a genin this year.

Logically, since she was the top of her graduating class, her chances of becoming a genin statistically rose. However Natsuki couldn't stop the flip in her stomach at the prospect of failing. Even worse she had a 1 in 7 chance of getting her father as the Jonin Instructor for her team. Don't get her wrong; Natsuki loved her dad. Naruto was the most fun loving dad in the world. He was strong too. When she was younger she hadn't thought he was strong because he was so goofy all time. Even all the stories of how he beat Pein and how he'd fought the ten-tailed beast hadn't changed her impression of him.

All that changed when she was 7 years old. Her parents had told her time and time again not to stay out past 6, but Natsuki hadn't listened. After all…what danger could there be in Konoha? It was the strongest shinobi village around. The first day Natsuki had stayed out late she returned home fine and uncaught. The second day had been the same. On the third day she had been kidnapped and, much to Natsuki's chagrin, it had been embarrassingly easy. It had only taken a knock to the back of her neck. When Natsuki awoke she was in an unknown warehouse with a bunch of other crying kids. The man that kidnapped her was a missing nin from Konoha who was working for a slave dealer, a greasy looking guy with fat lips. Natsuki had tried to fight, but the missing nin had been superior to her in every way and she was easily beat down.

Natsuki wouldn't admit it to anyone, but she had been terrified. She didn't know how many hours went by. All she knew was that she had wanted to go home. Then, as if by magic, the sealed door burst open crashing against the other side of the wall. Standing in the doorway, with furious look on his face, was her father. However, his appearance was different than usual. He had strange orange markings over his red eyes and his pupils were cross shaped. Even more frightening was the red chakra seeping of him. He looked every bit like the stories she'd heard about him.

The fight that followed hadn't been long, but it showed Natsuki how strong her father was. No matter what jutsu or attacks the missing-nin threw at him, dad just side stepped them all while stalking forward towards his prey. The missing-nin stopped using projectile attacks and charged, throwing his fist forward at blinding speed. Dad, however, simply caught the fist with his left hand and pulled the man towards him. His other hand was shoved to the missing nin's gut and the missing-nin spasmed in pain. Natsuki wasn't sure, but she could have sworn she saw something blue in dad's hand before he shoved it in the guy. Her dad held the missing-nin in that position for a few seconds before releasing the missing-nin who collapsed on the floor. The slave trader tried to escape, but he simply got a punch in the face that knocked him unconscious.

Natsuki couldn't help but flinch when her father approached her, fearing her father's anger, yet knowing full well that she deserved it. However her father simply kneeled down and hugged her. Then dad did something Natsuki had never seen him do: He cried. Natsuki stood shocked as she was held tightly in her father's arms. Seeing his trembling form, made Natsuki realize how much grief she must have caused with her disappearance. They stayed that way until a group of Konoha shinobi finally came to apprehend the criminals and return the children to their families. By that time the red chakra had all, but disappeared.

Needless to say, after tearful reunion with mom, Natsuki received a huge amount of punishments when she got home. The entire ordeal taught her she should become much stronger before staying out late and, despite her father's stupid demeanor, he was as indeed the hero who slew the ten tailed beast.

It wasn't her dad's lack strength that made Natsuki not want him as her Jonin Instructor. She feared that people would call it favoritism if her father had been the one to make her a genin, especially now since genin qualification had become a competition. She'd worked hard and made top of her year through her own merits and she would hate if people credited her being a genin to her father. Though she'd liked to think that her dad wouldn't be biased, Natsuki couldn't guarantee that his love for her wouldn't influence his judgment. It was better not to put that burden on him.

"Hellooo? Did you hear me Natsu-chan?"

Natsuki blinked when a hand waved in front of her face, knocking her out of her thoughts. She pushed her seat back in surprise and nearly fell over. Miyu's face smirked back at her.

"Just wondering if you were home in there,"

Natsuki growled and shoved her chair back in place. "I am now. What was it you were saying?"

"I was wondering who you think our Jonin Instructors would be."

"Why do you think I would know?"

Miyu rolled her amber eyes. "I didn't think you would know. I was just asking your opinion."

She and Miyu Shikara had been best friends since they'd met on her first day at Konoha Academy. Their personalities just clicked. Miyu was one of the few kunoichi in the academy who worried more about her shinobi skills than about her hair. Not that she really needed to worry about her looks. Though styled short, her silky deep red hair, and her exotic golden eyes along with her naturally creamy skin made her one of the prettiest kunoichi in the academy and garnered quite a few looks of envy from girls who had to put a lot of effort into looking pretty.

Natsuki sighed and slumped in her seat. "I don't know about the other 6, but I know for a fact that my dad's going to be one."

"Ah, that's why you were being so paranoid."

"I wasn't being paranoid!"

Miyu shrugged dismissively. "Defensive then…It doesn't matter either way. You should be happy that your father is one of the Jonin Instructors. Your chances of being a genin this year has greatly increased."

Natsuki was about to reply when a girlish voice interrupted them. "Your _father_ is going to be a Jonin instructor?"

Both girls turn to see a tall black haired girl approach them. She wore a white kimono like dress tied with a violet sash over fishnet bodice. The kimono was designed for shinobi wear since it reached just above her knees and parted slightly, giving her free use of her legs. Beneath her kimono she wore tight black pants that covered just bellow her knees. Yuri Kurama was arguably the most popular girl in their year and, Natsuki reluctantly admitted, one of the prettier ones. If only she didn't have the attitude of a harpy.

"Resorting to nepotism are we, Uzumaki?" Yuri sneered despite her pretty face. She was one of the few kunoichi who wore make-up—a shade of violet over her eyes and a light touch of lip gloss.

"Shut up, Yuri." Natsuki snarled. "No one asked for your opinion."

"Aww did the truth hurt our poor little sunflower's feelings?"

Natsuki resisted the urge to pummel Yuri's smug face. The nickname 'little sunflower' had derived from one of the most embarrassing moments in her life. When she was ten, Natsuki had received her first confession. A large boy in her class, whom she barely knew, professed his love to her in front of the entire class. Even worse...he'd done it with poem. Natsuki wasn't sure of the exact wording, as she had been too busy hiding her face, but she had heard something about 'yellow hair like the sun' and 'shiny teeth behind kissable lips'. The poem finally concluded with 'Please be my mine, my little sunflower." What followed after had been horrible. The entire class had erupted into laughter and Natsuki would have felt bad for the boy…if she hadn't felt the need to dig herself a hole and never come out again. In the following weeks, the kids in her class had taken to calling her 'my little sunflower' and she hadn't seen hide or hair of the boy who confessed to her again.

"Don't listen to her, Natsu," Miyu glared at Yuri. "She's just jealous. There's nothing wrong with getting your dad as your jonin instructor. You should make use of whatever advantage you've got."

"Me? Jealous of the little sunflower?" Yuri scoffed. "As if!"

"Natsu's father is the famed Naruto Uzumaki, hero of the leaf. There's plenty she can learn from him… unlike your father."

"My father is the head of the Kurama clan!" Yuri screeched. "At least he's not some retired shinobi who does absolutely nothing, but drink alcohol all day!"

Natsuki knew it was time to stop the conversation when she saw the look in Miyu's eyes. Her best friend looked ready to kill. "Okay that's enough. Break it up."

Yuri swiveled around to face her. "Don't presume to tell me what to do, Uzumaki!"

"She's got sense." Miyu folded her arms across her chest. "That's more than I can say about you, Kurama."

"Watch your mouth, Shikara! You don't want me as an enemy!"

Miyu snorted. "So what would you call us now? Friends?"

"You don't know what I'm capable of! I'll…,"

"Alright that's it!" Natsuki shouted slamming her hands against her table. "Both of you just stop!"

Startled, both girls turned towards her-along with some other classmates. Natsuki blushed, but stood her ground.

"I don't know when the conversation started getting personal, but it should stop. There's no need to bring our fathers into this. I mean, just because my father's a jonin instructor doesn't mean I'll necessarily be on his team and-."

"Whoa…did I just hear you right, Uzumaki? Your _father's _going to be one of our Jonin instructors?"

Surprised, Natsuki swiftly turned to the owner of the voice. She came face to face with a grinning Kazuo. Kazuo Toshida was the second most popular guy in their year. His best friend, Isshiro Yamanaka was the first. However, Kazuo wasn't popular the same way the silent, cool Isshiro was. Nor was he excessively stylish or arrogant like Yuri. He was popular simply because he was friends with everyone. And she did mean everyone. Kazuo was the type of guy who could joke and hang out with just about anyone and he had more girl _friends _than actual girlfriends, though Natsuki remembered seeing him date a couple of girls in the past. He wasn't bad looking either. With his spiky sky blue hair and mischievous smile, he could make some girls swoon if he tried.

And, if Natsuki were honest with herself, she did have a little crush on him. Just a little one though. "Yeah…"

Kazuo whistled. "Well I'll be. A living, breathing hero's going to be one of our senseis. I can't wait. I hope I'll be on his team."

"Not you to, Kazu-kun," Yuri whined. "He's not all that great."

Kazuo raised an eyebrow. "You've met him before Yuri-chan?"

Yuri huffed. "Uncle Shikamaru used to bring him over all the time. He's a total goofball. I don't like him at all."

Natsuki smirked. "She's lying. Yuri had this huge crush on my father when she was little. Used to follow him around everywhere, or at least she did, until she found out he had a wife."

Miyu and Kazuo snickered.

"Hmph!" Yuri flipped her wavy hair and stalked back to her gossipy friends.

Natsuki shook her head and grinned at Kazuo. "With an attitude like hers, it's a wonder you're friends at all."

"Yuri's not so bad…and she throws the best parties." Kazuo shrugged. "She's just a little high strung."

"I suppose that's one way to call it," Miyu said rolling her eyes. She turned to Natsuki. "I didn't know you and Yuri used to hang out."

It was a simple question, but Natsuki heard a faint accusation in her tone. "We didn't. Not really, at least. My father knows Yuri's mother so he, my mom, and Shikamaru-san would visit from time to time. I just came along so I could play with Hikaru."

"Hikaru?" Kazuo questioned.

"Hikaru Sarutobi…Yuri's brother. He's the best. You should definitely meet him. He and you would get along."

"Wait, hold on," Miyu interrupted "If he's Kurama's brother, why's his surname Sarutobi?"

"They're half siblings, I think," Natsuki shrugged. "I don't really know the details. They're nothing alike though. He and I used to spend all day pranking dad, sticking glue in his seat, smashing him with paint balls; Yuri wouldn't even touch the paint."

"But not anymore?"

"Hikaru's been recently promoted to ANBU so I haven't seen him around lately," Natsuki admitted bitterly.

"Everyone, back to your seats!"

Everyone in the room scrambled back to their seats at the sound of Iruka-sensei's voice. Natsuki, who had already been in her seat watched as Kazuo jumped from table to table until he returned to his seat. Miyu elbowed her. "I know who you're looking at,"

"Be quiet," Natsuki hissed.

"Alright everyone, settle down so we can get started."

There were a couple more murmurs before the classroom finally quieted down.

Iruka shuffled a couple of folders he had in his arms before addressing them.

"You are all aware of the new genin selection process, yes?"

There were several nods and a few murmured, "Yes."

"Good. Two of the seven jonins are ready to begin. Those whose names are called by the jonin shall meet in whatever field the jonin designates. As for those who don't have their names called, we will meet here again tomorrow."

A hand raised itself in the hair.

"Yes, Ai?"

"What will we be doing?"

Iruka shrugged. "More basic training I assume."

There was a collective groan from the class.

"Before we get started, I just want to say that I'm proud of you all." Iruka beamed at them. "Some of you I've known since you were kids and some I've only known for only a year, but I am happy to have guided you through this first part of your shinobi career. Your life will only get harder from here on out, but I hope you'll stay strong and carry the will of fire in your hearts. For those who do manage to become genins today, congratulations! But for those who do not, know that it wasn't necessarily your skills that were lacking. Now if there are no more questions, without further ado, please welcome your jonin instructors."

On cue, a large whirlwind of leaves appeared in front of the class. When the wind settled, two men stood in front of them. One was a well built older man with huge eyebrows and bowl cut hairstyle ,wearing a hideous green jumpsuit beneath his jonin vest. The other, Natsuki recognized immediately as Kakashi Hitake…a friend of the family. As always the masked shinobi clutched a small orange book in his hand.

"Ah! It's been so long since I've seen such youthful faces!" The jonin in the hideous green jumpsuit elbowed his companion. "It reminds you of the good old days, doesn't it Kakashi?"

"Mmm," Kakashi said noncommittally

"Well let's get started then, shall we?" The jonin with the large eyebrows pointed at Kakashi. "I, Maito Guy, challenge you, Hitake Kakashi, for the right to go first."

"Ah, well, my back hurts so I forfeit. You can go first."

Natsuki chuckled at the disheartened look on the self-introduced Maito Guy's face. His mood seemed to brighten, however, as he pulled out a scroll.

"Very well, since my eternal rival is feeling rather ill at the moment, I will go first and call out the names of those who are lucky enough to be assigned to Konoha's Sublime Green Beast! Ready? Atushi Yuuta…"

And the names went on and on. Natsuki grinned at Yuri's grimace when her named was called.

"…And finally, we have Yanero Akira! Let's all meet on training ground 11!" Large brows struck a weird pose with a hand on his hip and one finger pointed to the sky. "First one to the training ground gets an automatic genin pass!" Then he was gone in a blur. All the people whose name he had called stood shocked for a moment before scrambling to their feet and charging at the door like a heard of rhinos. Even Yuri, Natsuki noted with amusement, nearly tripped over herself in her haste to make it to the door. It was a pity that she hadn't gotten in Maito-san's team. Anyone who could make Yuri-hime run was okay by her books.

"I guess it's my turn now," Kakashi said when the last of Guy's students had left. "Everyone I call will pack their belongings and head to training ground 7. Akiyama Horo…"

Natsuki listened intently, hoping to hear a name she recognized. She didn't. Though…she did hear a 'Hyuuga' from among those named. The clan was famed in Konoha for their Byakugan. Natsuki sighed. She wasn't even sure she wanted to be in Kakashi's team, despite him being a friend of the family. When she was little she had heard tales of Kakashi of the Sharingan Eye and Kakashi the Copycat Shinobi. She wanted to meet him.

However, she soon learned that the real Kakashi was nothing like in the stories. Her dad had taken to calling Kakashi a lazy old dog whenever Kakashi showed up to their house and Natsuki was inclined to agree. From what she could tell, he did nothing, but laze around reading his orange book all day. Natsuki had seen no sign of his supposed Sharingan Eye. As if he had heard her thoughts, Kakashi looked her in the eye. She could've sworn there was a glint in his only visible eye as he said, "Uzumaki Natsuki."

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Alright! What do you guys think of Natsuki and the next generation genins? More will be introduced later. Also you get a cookie if you can guess Yuri's parentage. I thought it was fairly obvious with all the details I put in, but most my friends had no clue when they read it. Also a big thanks to my one follower and two reviewers. Reviewing shows me you care about my story xD -hugs-


	4. Chapter 4: The New Jonins

Naruto hummed happily as he carried his fifth helping of ramen to his table. Ever since Saiko had started her healthy diet plan, she had forbidden him from eating ramen except for once a month. If he so much as mentioned ramen around the house he would be subjected to a long lecture about healthy foods. Even worse, she'd gotten Ayame-chan in on the plan as well. Naruto hadn't believed it at first, but apparently the woman cared more about his health than his value as a regular customer. Naruto supposed he should have been touched, if the whole plan wasn't costing him his Ramen. Ah well, what the girls don't know won't hurt them.

Naruto sat down and inhaled the scent of freshly cooked ramen. Damn he missed this. As much he as he loved Saiko's cooking, there was just something about ramen. It wasn't as good as Ichiraku's, but beggars couldn't be choosers. Naruto dug into his meal.

"May I sit here?"

Naruto quickly slurped up his noodle and looked up. Standing before him was one of the new jonin instructors, the one that looked sixteen. Naruto looked around at the nearly empty dining hall and shrugged.

"Go ahead,"

His fellow jonin sat down across from him, placing her tray in front of her. "Thanks. Eating alone is boring and I'm used to company. I'm Mayumi Sato by the way."

"Naruto Uzumaki. It's no problem."

Naruto returned to eating his beloved ramen. He could feel Mayumi's eyes on him. "Is there something on my face?"

Mayumi flushed. "No. It's just…you really are Naruto Uzumaki, aren't you."

"Um…yeah?"

She flashed him a grin. "I've always wanted to meet you."

Naruto replied with an amused smile. "We'll I'm glad to have been of service."

Mayumi chuckled and picked up her sandwich. "You're different from what I thought you'd be."

"What did you expect me to be?" Naruto asked conversationally, occasionally feeding the ramen strands to his mouth.

Mayumi chewed and swallowed before answering. "From Inari's stories, I thought you'd be much more…energetic."

Naruto chortled, nearly choking on his Ramen. After several coughs, he stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Inari…Inari…I know I've heard that name somewhere…,"

"From the Land of the Waves," Mayumi hinted.

Naruto's eyes widened. "Ah! The apprentice carpenter! How is he? I haven't seen him in so long."

Mayumi took another bite of her sandwich, chewed, and swallowed. "Well, for one, he's no longer an apprentice and two-he's married and expecting his first child soon."

Naruto whistled. It appeared that the little kid he'd met on his first c-rank mission had finally grown up and started his own family. "Maybe I should drop by and wish him well."

"He'd like that." Mayumi agreed, taking a sip of coffee.

"Can I assume, from the fact that you know him, you're from the Land of the Waves?"

Mayumi nodded. "I grew up seeing the Great Naruto Bridge and hearing stories about you and team 7 from Inari and old man Tazuna."

"Good ones I hope," Naruto returned to eating his ramen

Mayumi smirked. "Good depending on how you look at it, but yes, fairly good. Those stories inspired me to become a shinobi and I moved to Konoha when I was 8. I had always wanted to meet you."

"Is this a private party or can anyone join?" A rough voiced interrupted them. Naruto looked away from Mayumi to see another one of the new Jonins approach. This time it was the one with a sharp face and tall hair. Behind him was the skinny jonin with glasses.

"Be my guest,"

The tall haired shinobi sat beside Mayumi and the glasses shinobi sat beside Naruto. _Mayumi and tall-haired made a funny pair sitting next to each other, _Naruto thought humorously.

Glasses shinobi smiled at him. "It's been a while Naruto-san,"

Surprised, Naruto leaned peered at face of his fellow instructor. He did look familiar, but Naruto still couldn't place the face. "I'm sorry, but do I know you?"

"It's me, Udon."

Naruto blinked. Then he grinned. "Ah, I think I see the resemblance now. What are you doing here? Last I heard from Konohamaru, he was scaling the mountain ranges of the Land of Lightning."

"He's still there," Udon said pushing up his glasses. He smirked, an expression Naruto had never seen from Udon before. It made him look sharper. "Konohomaru and Moegi are newlyweds and I didn't want to disrupt their honeymoon."

Naruto snorted. "I saw that one coming a mile away. Does that mean you'll be staying in Konoha for now?"

Udon shrugged. "It depends on how good my batch of genin is."

Tall-haired grinned, revealing a fine row of sharp teeth that Naruto hadn't noticed before. "Udon here's thinking of doing some kind of treasure hunt, with clues, codes, and whatnot. Personally, I don't see the point in something like that."

Udon narrowed his eyes. "And what have you got planned Kantamaru-kun,"

Kantamaru shrugged. "I'm a simple guy so I guess I'll just spar 'em and see whose got what it takes to be a genin."

"I can appreciate that," Naruto chuckled. He held out his hand "We've never been properly introduced. I'm Naruto Uzumaki."

Kantamaru took Naruto's hand with his own bandaged one. "Kantamaru Higari. Trust me, the pleasure's all mine. It's good to meet someone who appreciates my style."

Mayumi rolled her brown eyes. "What's the shinobi world come to when intelligence and cleverness gets replaced by sheer brute strength?"

"Finally," Udon said, exasperatedly. "Someone who understands my pain."

Naruto gave Udon a sheepish grin before looking around. "I wonder where Hinata is?"

"If you're talking about Hyuuga-san, she's still with Maito-san." Mayumi answered as she finished the rest of her lunch.

Kantamaru shook his head. "I don't know how she can stand him. The old man's energy is way too overbearing. I appreciate his advice and all, but if I hear the word 'youth' one more time someone's going to be cut to ribbons."

"Is that why you all were so late for lunch," Naruto smirked. "You were ambushed by Guy?"

"Yep," Mayumi grinned. "We were brainstorming ideas for the genin test when Guy-san showed up,"

Naruto nodded. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I've been dying to know. How old are you, Mayumi?"

"Don't worry, I get that a lot. I'm 25."

Naruto, Kantamaru, and Udon's eyes widened comically.

"No way! You're only three years younger than me?" Kantamaru exclaimed. He turned to look at Udon. "Don't tell me you're actually older than me."

Udon shot Kantamaru a smug look. "Sorry…I'm thirty."

Kantamaru stabbed his fork against his pasta angrily. Naruto could hear him muttering something about 'non-aging freaks'.

Mayumi shook her head. "You guys are acting like children. Age has nothing to do with being a shinobi."

"Now that I think about it, you said you grew up on stories about me," Naruto said thoughtfully. "So your age sort of makes sense. That means you were three when the bridge was built."

Mayumi nodded. "I was too young to understand what was going on then, but I'm grateful for you and your team. Your actions stabilized my country's economy and helped it become as prosperous as it is today."

Naruto blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "You should really thank Kakashi. He was the one who really did anything. I was only a genin then."

"I will," Mayumi smiled. "But I don't think you should underplay your accomplishments. You gave our people hope with your words and your deeds."

Kantamaru rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright, enough hero-worship. You guys are making my lunch come back."

Naruto smirked, but nodded agreeably. Then a thought came to him. "Oh, I have a daughter, Natsuki, who's just graduated the academy. I was wondering if any you were assigned her."

"Nope," Mayumi answered amusedly. "I didn't even know you had a daughter."

"I think I'd notice if anyone of my kiddies was named Uzumaki." Kantamaru added.

"None of us have her," Udon drank his tea. "Neither does Hinata-san and Maito-san. I have a photographic memory, so I would know."

"Alright. If none of you have Suki-chan the only one left is…,"

Naruto groaned. He's daughter's luck was poor if she had him as her tester. Of all the examiners, Kakashi was probably the hardest one. Kakashi doesn't judge his team based on strength or intelligence like most shinobi and the lazy old man has no qualms about failing every student. He hadn't passed a single team since team 7. Why hadn't Kakashi told him about Natsuki? Naruto's eyes widened and he slapped his forehead. Of course! Kakashi had come to him. The Copycat shinobi rarely ever ate at the Instructor's Hall. Naruto couldn't believe he'd forgotten. Ah well, there was no use crying over spilled ramen.

Naruto finished the slurping down the rest of his ramen soup and stood up. "Well, it was nice meeting you guys. Maybe we'll see each other again sometime."

"Where are you going, Naruto-san," Mayumi questioned.

Naruto smirked. "The forest of death,"

* * *

Saiko watered the Geiken Plant in the department greenhouse, watching as the leaves turned red. She wore a loose, white, full body suit to protect her from the chakra absorbing properties of the plant. Once the leaves turned purple, she began extracting them.

"Still working hard, Saiko-chan?" Shizune-san said as she entered the greenhouse. "Most your co-workers are still at lunch."

Shizune-san was the head of Konoha's Department of Drug and Poison Development and Saiko's boss. Despite her age, Shizune still had a full head of black hair. The old woman stopped beside Saiko.

"I wanted to gather more Geiken leaves for the drug I've been working on," Saiko explained unnecessarily.

Shizune gifted her subordinate with a small, affectionate, smile. "Worried about your daughter? I heard from Guy she was taking part in the genin competition today. And for Kakashi's team no less."

Saiko blushed behind her full-head mask. "Yes. Hayate-san informed me of the changes of the genin selection procedure. He told me he would be in charge of Natsuki."

Shizune shook her head and sighed exasperatedly. "Things certainly have changed since I was young. It's getting harder and harder to become a genin now."

"I'm also worried about, Naruto." Saiko admitted. "He's never been an instructor before. I've always pushed him to do something with his free time, but I'm afraid he'll be too overburdened. He's still a field active Jonin."

"So Iruka managed to reel Naruto in, did he?" Shizune grinned. "The last time I saw the old codger, he was going to every jonin he knew, begging them to oversee the new academy graduates."

"Last night," Saiko confirmed as she put the last of the Geiken leaves in her container. "Though, my husband was a little drunk at the time."

Shizune chuckled. "Iruka must've been getting desperate if he started resorting to alcohol. Anyway, you shouldn't worry about Naruto. I've known Naruto-kun since he was twelve and he's never let anyone down when it truly mattered. As for Natsuki, I can't say for sure whether she'll become a genin or not, but I'm sure she'll do just fine. You should trust her. She's been taught by you and Naruto after all."

"Thanks," Saiko said. "You've made me feel a little better."

Shizune nodded. "Good. Now let's head back before the Geiken plant ends up sucking out all my chakra."

* * *

**Author's Note: **Sorry if this chaps a bit boring, but introductions must be made. Next chapter will be Natsuki's bell test and team. Stay tuned =D


	5. Chapter 5: Kakashi's Bell Test (Part 1)

It was nearly 1:30pm when Natsuki and her peers finally arrived at training field 7. Standing at the center of the training field was their jonin instructor, Kakashi. Behind him were seven stumps.

"Welcome to training ground 7, also known as the Third Training Ground." Kakashi greeted when they all gathered around. "If you aren't aware, my name is Kakashi Hatake and I will be your proctor for this final genin examination. If you impress me, you will receive me as your genin-instructor. If not…" Kakashi shrugged. "…tough luck. Any questions before I get started explaining the rules of my test?"

"Do you really have a sharingan eye?" One boy asked excitedly.

Kakashi waved dismissively. "You'll find out if you're chosen to be my genin. Anyone else?"

The field was silent except for the occasional chirping of birds.

"Then I'll get started," Kakashi pulled out two bells from his left pocket. "My test has been coined the bell test. It's a fairly simple test. You've got two hours to steal these bells from me." Kakashi dangled the bells.

Natsuki raised her hand. "Why are there only two bells? Shouldn't there be three?"

"I'm glad you noticed," Kakashi grinned. Or at least she thought he did. It was hard to tell with his mask on. "Unfortunately, as many people have pointed out, I'm getting old." Kakashi looked pointedly at Natsuki as he said this. Natsuki blushed, but didn't look away. Kakashi nodded, as if satisfied by her response. "As such, I've decided that I'll only accept two genin for now."

There were several outcries of rage. Kakashi narrowed his eyes. "If you all don't quiet down, I'm decreasing that number to one."

The field had once again become silent.

"Good," Kakashi said cheerily. He pulled out a batch of straws from his right pocket and held them out. "There are twenty one straws labeled from one to seven. It won't be fair for me to expect one of you to be able to beat me on your own so each of you is going to pick one straw and those with straws of the same number will be on the same team. This will be a team competition. If you pass my test, the team members you get will be with you for the rest of your shinobi career. Your team will need both bells to pass."

"You want us to pick our teammates with _straws_?" A girl asked, horrified. "What if we get someone really pathetic on our team?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Luck's also an important, but often disregarded, aspect of being a shinobi."

Natsuki rolled her eyes. That was a total Kakashi answer.

The person beside Natsuki spoke up. "If there are twenty one straws numbered one to seven each then that means each team will be three people. You said you would only accept two of us as genin. That means only two members of each team will pass."

"Very perceptive," Kakashi nodded at the boy next to Natsuki. Then he waved his hand to indicate the stumps behind him. "This leads us to the next part of my explanation. As you can see there are seven stumps, one for each team. I will be judging each of you and determining the weakest link of each team. This person will be tied to a stump for the remainder of the test. Anyone seen helping this person will be disqualified." Kakashi paused to let the information sink in. "Now, since that has been settled, everyone come up and pick your straws."

Natsuki watched as a bunch of her peers rushed to pick their straws first. She sighed and walked slowly to Kakashi, avoiding he onslaught of kids. It wasn't like going first really determined who your teammates were going to be. Natsuki plucked the straw from Kakashi's hand and peered at the number. Seven.

"Who's got number seven?" Natsuki called as she walked around. Some groups had already been formed.

"Um. M-me. I've got number seven."

Natsuki turned around to see a short silver haired boy with a bowl cut looking at his feet. She frowned. "Hi, I'm Natsuki Uzumaki."

"Ushimoro Takeda," the boy squeaked, still looking at the floor.

"Aren't you going to look at me?" Natsuki asked irritably.

Startled the boy looked up, his face turning red. "S-sorry."

Natsuki sighed and the two were silent until their third member showed up. His pale blue pupil-less eyes distinguished him as a Hyuuga, though, surprisingly, he had tan skin. He had dark hair tied in a low ponytail and an expressionless look on his face. For clothing he wore loose, pair of dark blue pants with many pockets and a tight, sleeveless black top revealing the bandages around his hand and arms. "Are you both number seven?"

Natsuki nodded.

"Y-yes," Ushimoro answered looking like he wanted to be anywhere else, but here.

The Hyuuga took one look at Ushimoro before dismissing him and facing Natsuki. "You must be Uzumaki. I'm Jin Hyuuga."

"Yes, Natsuki Uzumaki." Natsuki confirmed. She waited for Ushimoro to introduce himself. When he didn't she pointed at him. "And he's Ushimoro Takeda."

Jin spared a glance at Ushimoro, but the boy had once again taken a liking to his feet.

"Pleasure," Jin said dryly.

"Now that everyone one's got their teams the fun can begin," Kakashi said happily, drawing the attention of all the academy graduates. "Since there are so many of you, the exam will take place in the forest behind the training field. You can start whenever you're ready, but the time limit starts now!"

Then Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke leaving the rest of the students in stunned silence.

A few seconds later, mayhem erupted as teams charged into the forest in different directions, determined to be the first to find Kakashi. Natsuki grabbed each of her teammates' shoulders, holding them back from joining their peers.

"What are you doing?" Jin asked harshly pulling away from her grip. "We have to hurry, or else some other team will find Kakashi first."

"Yeah…" Ushimoro said, for once not stuttering, though he didn't resist her grip.

"And what do you think would happen if they found Kakashi first?"

"They would steal the bells from…," Hyuuga paused. "Oh."

Natsuki snorted. "Oh is right. Kakashi's a jonin. The chances of us stealing the bells from him are nearly zilch, especially without a plan. He gave us time to strategize by saying we can start at any time. The moment we step into the forest we put ourselves in the battlefield. If we just wander aimlessly around looking for him with no plans, we'd simply be easy pickings. The first and most important rule of pranking: always have a plan."

"This isn't a prank," Jin said. "But I see your point."

"Uh…s-so what do you suggest w-we do?" Ushimoro stammered.

"Plan," Natsuki said dryly. "But I can't come up with any plans until I know what I'm working with. What are your talents?"

"Taijutsu," Jin said immediately. "I'm proficient in the gentle fist style. I also have the Byakugan."

Natsuki peered into Jin's eyes. "I've heard of the Byakugan, but I have no idea what it can do."

"Using the Byakugan, I can see everything around me at a 100 meter radius," Jin explained smugly. "I can also see through objects and see chakra."

Natsuki whistled. "Wow. That's useful."

She turned to Ushimoro. "And you? What about your talents?"

Ushimoro mumbled something.

"What was that?"

"Running away," Ushimoro said quietly. "I'm really good at running away."

Natsuki and Jin waited for him to continue, but their team member remained silent. Jin raised an eyebrow. "That's it? Running?"

Ushimoro turned redder than his shirt.

"And he's my team member," Jin cursed.

Natsuki narrowed his eyes. "Don't be a jerk, Hyuuga. It's not like all of us have the benefit of being born with the Byakugan."

"What about you?" Jin retorted. "What can you add to this team?"

"I'm an overall proficient shinobi, decent with taijutsu, and scored above average in tactical planning. But I'm a master of the substitution jutsu." Natsuki beamed proudly. "I can also do this."

She arranged her hands into the ram, snake, and tiger sign. Instantly another version of her appeared.

"Have you mastered the Bushin no jutsu as well?" Jin deadpanned.

Natsuki's clone slapped Jin lightly on the face, both versions of her smirking at his stunned expression. "No, the Kage Bushin no jutsu."

Jin activated his byakugan, the veins around his eyes bulging. "It really does have chakra."

"Yep. Dad taught me. For now I only have enough chakra to make two perfect clones of myself that can perform any jutsu I know and fight as well as me. It also takes several clean hits before they disappear. I can create more, probably ten at max, but they're only useful for spying, sending messages, and surprising the enemy. They can't perform jutsu and it takes only one clean hit for them to disappear."

"It's s-still amazing," Ushimoro said. The boy looked at her in awe.

Natsuki grinned smugly. "I know."

"Back to planning," Jin said loudly. "We've already wasted ten minutes."

"Well…the first thing we've got to do is figure out how to find him." Natsuki sat down, closed her eyes, and began to think. The others sat down with her. There was a minute of silence. Then two.

"I've got my byakugan," Jin offered. "I'll look around until I find him."

Natsuki didn't look at him. "The forest is huge. There's no guarantee you'll find him before time runs out. We've only got two hours after all and I don't want him to surprise us."

Another five minutes passed in silence.

Then Jin stood up. "I've had enough. We're wasting time. Unless you've got a plan I'll just walk around until I spot him."

Sudden Natsuki's green eyes sprung open and a devious smirk curved on her lips. "No need. I've got a plan."

* * *

2:10pm

Kakashi jumped onto another tree and sighed. So far it's been thirty minutes since he started the bell test and not a single one of the genin has found him. He thought at least one of the genin groups would've found him already. He hadn't even bothered to hide his chakra. Kakashi pulled out his trusty pocket watch. He'd give them another thirty minutes before he started picking out the weakest links. Kakashi had already found most teams and surveyed their capabilities. For some reason, he hadn't been able to find Natsuki's team, which either meant she was really good at hiding or she hadn't entered the forest yet. He was betting the latter.

Kakashi heard a rustle and looked down. Three academy graduates stepped out from behind a brush. They walked beneath his tree, not noticing him.

"Are you sure Hyuuga's team found Kakashi?" A fat boy with beady eyes asked. Kakashi blinked. As far as he could tell, he had not been found.

A girl with pigtails nodded. "Yeah, Hyuga apparently found Kakashi with his Byakugan and is still chasing him. They're on the other side of the forest."

"I knew splitting up was a good idea." A boy with glasses said "We better hurry before they take his bells!"

The three nodded and dashed off.

_So…someone was impersonating him…interesting_.

Kakashi followed the trio for fifteen minutes, keeping himself hidden from view. Finally they stopped. Kakashi eyes widened incredulously at the sight before him. He had expected to see another version of himself. What he hadn't expected was the giant mob of children chasing that version. He counted seventeen academy graduates in total. A few seconds later the three he'd been following joined the chase.

It was quite a sight. The fake Kakashi looked like he was running for his life, which he probably was. Kakashi chuckled. He didn't really know what the fake version of him was trying to do, but he had to give him points for courage. Despite all the sharp objects being thrown at him, the fake Kakashi maintained a good distance. Kakashi watched amusedly as the false version of him passed underneath his tree.

Suddenly there was a whistle from somewhere in the back. The fake Kakashi did a couple of hand seals and was encased in smoke. When the smoke cleared, in the fake Kakashi's place, was a sliver haired boy wearing a red shirt, black shinobi pants, and a terrified expression on his face. The crowd of academy graduates stopped in its tracks, staring at the boy with confused expressions.

Before any of them could make up their minds a voice in the back shouted, "He's over there!"

Kakashi, and everyone else, zeroed their eyes on speaker. Standing in the back was a tanned skinned boy with his Byakugan activated, pointing directly at him.

"He's on the tree! Kakashi must have used the substitution technique!"

Kakashi would have been impressed by the range of that boy's Byakugan…if all the eyes of the academy graduates hadn't immediately fallen on him. Kakashi cursed. Like a hoard of buffalos everyone charged at him. Kakashi pulled out a kunai and deflected several shuriken. Two different legs shot out at his face which he dodged by adding a little chakra to his feet and allowing himself to fall. Before he completed the fall though, he grabbed both their legs and, using the force of momentum, hurled their bodies to the ground. By the time he was upside down, hanging off a large branch, he was assaulted from both sides by another two. Using one hand against each, he deflected them. Then he flipped and landed on the ground where another three charged at him.

Kakashi sighed. Normally, fighting genins wouldn't be this much of a problem. But the sheer number, and the fact that he wasn't allowed to maim them, made fighting all of them at the same time rather difficult. Kakashi side stepped the hand aiming for his bells, ducked the kunai aimed for his neck, and sweep kicked the third person all in one motion. Then grabbed the leg of the one closest to him, and tossed the body at the girl who charged at him for his bells. All of a sudden, a fireball came at him.

Using hand signs quickly, he casted a substitution technique, replacing himself with the log he'd seen from the corner of his eye. It gave him a moment of reprieve as no seemed to know where he was. At least until a boy, no doubt the Hyuuga, shouted. "He's behind the tree!"

Kakashi sighed. He was really starting to hate the Byakugan. This time it was the children he recognized who charged him. Natsuki and the Hyuuga boy leapt at him, from opposite directions. He had to admit, the Hyuuga was a level above everyone else in taijutsu. Kakashi had to actually work at keeping the Hyuuga's thrusts away from his chakra points. It didn't help that Natsuki kept distracting him. Twice he almost lost the bell to her. Every time he made a move to block the gentle fist, he created an opening that Natsuki was more than willing to exploit. And then there were the other academy graduates who would occasionally jump in, or throw kunais. This forced him to move at three times the speed he normally used.

Natsuki's taijutsu was above par, but it wasn't quite the level that Hyuuga had. Her kicks weren't especially fast and her punches weren't especially strong. What she had though, was a good fighting sense and an uncanny ability to see and exploit openings. A style, Kakashi noted amusedly, that was almost the complete opposite of her father's. Pair her with someone who could create many openings and she'd be a force to be reckoned with.

Having had enough, Kakashi deflected a thrust from Hyuuga, blocked another attempt at the bell from Natsuki with his knee, and grabbed the Hyuuga's other arm as it was coming. He pulled the Hyuuga forward, tripped him, and flipped him on his back, enjoying the stunned expression on the boy's face as he did so. Payback was wonderful. Taking advantage of Natsuki's hesitation he aimed a jab at her gut…only to have his fist meet a small balloon. Kakashi's eyes widened and the balloon popped, spraying a white, paint like substance that splattered on his hands, face, and clothes.

"Juvenile pranks?" Kakashi asked the Hyuuga who was still lying on his back. Inwardly, he was pretty impressed. He hadn't seen Natsuki do any hand signs which meant that she must have completely mastered the substitution technique. Most genin, and even some chunin, don't bother to do so. The substitution technique was often underestimated, for being a simple academy jutsu. For Natsuki to be able to do it so fast, and in the middle of combat, required a lot of practice. He was lucky she hadn't decided to use the substitution jutsu with an explosive tag, but still…paint balloons? Kakashi knew paint balloons weren't a natural part of the forest, which meant that they must have been planted somewhere close since the substitution technique only worked when the desired object is within the user's line of sight.

The boy on the ground chuckled. "You look good with white spots."

Then the Hyuuga flipped himself back on his feet and cracked his neck. "Let's go again. I won't underestimate you this time."

"Cocky aren't you?" Kakashi jumped back as five kunais rained down on him. Running wasn't a very courageous thing to do, but since he had the disadvantage in terms of numbers, it was his best option. "Unfortunately I've done enough for now."

A single hand sign later and Kakashi sunk into the ground.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **I hope you all like Natsuki's teammates. Thank you for the reviews. They help motivate me to fight procrastination and continue writing. A warning: Kakashi's bell test is long, since I have a lot planned...will probably take three parts to finish.


	6. Chapter 6: Kakashi's Bell Test (Part 2)

2:40pm

Natsuki jumped down from her hiding position on the tree, grinning at Jin's dismal face. "Aww…are you upset at losing in a fistfight?"

Jin sneered. "You didn't do so well either, Uzumaki. I don't see you with any bells, despite the fact that I, and all the other academy graduates, created a million openings."

Natsuki scowled. "A million is an exaggeration. And it didn't help that you fell on your back!"

"I-I think Natsuki-san did the best she could," Ushimoro added as he approached.

Jin glared at the boy. "And where were you when we were struggling to get Kakashi's bells?"

Ushimoro looked at his feet.

"Can it, Hyuuga!" Natsuki snapped. "He tried his best."

"No he did not," Jin said angrily. "He deviated from the plan. I saw him stand back while everyone was charging at Kakashi."

Jin turned to Ushimoro. "Admit it. You didn't come out because you were scared, weren't you?"

Ushimoro refused to look up, but Natsuki could see the tears in his eyes. "I-I'm sorry."

Jin shoved him and Ushimoro fell on his bottom. "Stop saying sorry and start doing something about it."

"Stop picking on him!"

Jin shot Ushimoro a disgusted look, making the boy shrink, and turned away. "Whatever. We need a new plan since you're previous one didn't work."

Natsuki narrowed her eyes at the Hyuuga, but relented nonetheless. Fact is, they were on a time crunch. It's already been an hour and they still hadn't gotten the bells. They only had another hour to pass the exam. "You forget. Pranks are my specialty."

Jin raised his eyebrow and Natsuki smirked. "Rule number two of pranking: always design a back-up plan."

Jin blinked. "Who comes up with these rules?"

"My dad," Natsuki answered. "Anyway, remember the paint I spilled all over Kakashi?"

Jin nodded. "I never thought the substitution technique could be used like that. Your timing was impeccable."

"It took a lot of practice," Natsuki bragged. "I used to jump off a waterfall every day, leaving a plank of wood at the top, in order to practice the substituition technique under high pressure."

Ushimoro stared at her in awe and even Jin's eyes widened. "That's crazy,"

Natsuki smirked. "How else would I be able to prank Konoha's Crimson Fox? Anyways, the paint is actually a newly developed substance made from the leaves of a Geiken plant and it sucks out the chakra of whatever comes into contact with it."

"And you made it?" Jin asked doubtfully.

"No, I nicked in from one of my mom's poison cabinets, but that's beside the point."

"You _poisoned _our soon-to-be instructor?" Jin exclaimed. "What if he dies from chakra depletion?"

"He won't," Natsuki said stubbornly. "Mom never puts anything too dangerous in the cabinet she has at home. She's afraid I'll be able to take it."

"Clearly she was right," Jin said dryly. "So you coated Kakashi with some chakra absorbing substance that you can't control and don't know how much chakra it's going to take. I hope you have a good plan to go with your insanity."

Natsuki blushed. "I figured we could wait until his chakra is low and strike when he's weak."

"That's it?" Jin asked hollowly. "That's your back up plan? It really pales in comparison to your first."

"Oh shut up," Natsuki grumbled. "I didn't even think I needed a second plan. I never thought Kakashi could fight all the academy graduates, without seriously injuring anyone, and still manage to escape. He's much better than I thought, for an old man. We'll give the geiken substance fifteen minutes then attack. "

"Why fifteen minutes?"

Natsuki shrugged. "It's just a random number. I don't know how effective the substance is and we only have one hour to get the bells. Rather than wait for too long, it's better to measure the rate of his chakra depletion early. That way we'll have a better chance of succeeding the third assault."

Jin smirked. "Actually we do know. You're lucky I'm on your team."

"How?" Natsuki paused. "Oh…I had forgotten about that. You're Byakugan really is damn useful."

"B-but we still don't know where K-Kakashi-san is. I can't lure him out like l-last time. It won't work."

"Oh stop stuttering," Jin snapped.

Natsuki glared at Jin. She'd been pleasantly surprised when Ushimoro had finally spoken up, but Jin just had to put his two cents in. "Why don't you try activating your Byakuagan, Hyuuga. If I'm right Kakashi should still be around here."

Jin activated his byakugan. "You're right," he confirmed. "Kakashi's about 95 meters east of where we are. He's fighting a group of three students."

"That was the other part of my back up plan. By gathering the students all in one location we basically tie Kakashi to this area. Remember when he told us he'd pick out the weakest link of each team? That means he needs to measure each team's strength. Even though he'll be trying to avoid the students, as a proctor he still needs to observe them."

"D-do you think we can win?"

Natsuki shot the glum boy a confident grin. "Don't worry. I still have my ace in the hole.

* * *

3:10pm

Kakashi deflected another barrage of shurikens with his kunai. And the idiot of the team lunges at him again. Kakashi sighed. It was like watching Naruto as a genin come at him. Naruto at least had the benefit of his shadow clones to aid him. This boy seemed to think that just by charging at him he'll somehow, magically get the bells. Kakashi caught the boy's arm mid-lunge and twisted it behind the boy's back.

"I've determined Keisuke Rido to be the weakest link on your team. Therefore he will be tied to the stump in the center of the training field. Helping him means disqualification. Later."

Kakashi shunshined away with the boy.

The masked shinobi arrived at training field 7 where five students were already tied to a stump and quickly tied a protesting Keisuke to the stump as well.

"I'm not the weakest member of my team! I passed the academy exam just like everyone else! It's not fair that I don't get a chance to go for the bells! I should—"

Kaskashi placed his hand over the boy's mouth. "I assure you, you are the weakest member of your team. I'm very good at this sort of thing."

Kakashi crouched until he was at the boy's eye level. "But since you're being so loud I'll tell you a little secret. You've still got a chance to become a genin, but it all depends on how well your team members do."

Keisuke let out a muffled sound and Kakashi released his hand. "What do you mean?" the boy asked after taking a breath.

"Exactly what I said," Kakashi said before shunshining back into the forest. He still had one more team to find.

The other teams had made it easy by actively hunting him. He's managed to battle, evaluate, and determine the weakest link in each team in a span of thirty minutes. Natsuki's team would be the most difficult since the Hyuuga boy's byakugan wouldn't make it easy for Kakashi to ambush them. Kakashi blinked and stopped. He could feel a sense of foreboding in the air.

It was a good thing he trusted his senses which allowed him to barely dodge a thrust from above. The follow up attacks were quick and furious. He supposed the boy really did have a reason to be cocky about his taijutsu. He was already getting tired from deflecting the boy's attacks. Then again, he had been getting pretty fatigued since his previous encounter with them. Kakashi eyes widened in realization.

He was distracted when two arms came out of the ground, reaching for his bells. Kakashi avoided the attack using instinct alone. However, that gave the Hyuuga boy one solid attack to the chakra point to Kakashi left leg and before Kakashi managed to regain his balance, another pair of hands from the ground made a leap for the bell. Kakashi blocked the attack with is right foot, since his hands were occupied with the Hyuuga and barely twisted away from the third pair of hands. Kakashi cursed and landed a solid kick on the Hyuuga's stomach, using the boy's body as a spring board to gain distance. He'd been too slow.

Standing thirty feet from him were three, grinning copies of Natsuki Uzamaki. One of them was dangling a single bell. The Hyuuga boy was also smirking.

"The Shadow Clone Jutsu and the Underground move Jutsu…very impressive," Kakashi complimented. "Your substitution mastery is also unexpected for a simple academy graduate. Any more tricks up your sleeve?"

"None that I'm willing to tell you," One of the Natsukis retorted.

"I can see why Naruto told me you were a handful," Kakashi said cheerily. He lifted his forehead protector, revealing a red eye with three tomoe marks. Kakashi chuckled when the three graduates flinched. "Don't worry, I don't plan on using the sharingan against you three. I just wanted to check something."

He looked down at his hand his hands and body. "So this substance really was absorbing my chakra. It looks like it's only sucking where it has direct contact with my skin. I have a little over half my chakra left and it's still going. I hope it's washable. By the way…"

Kakashi looked up at the two. "Where's your third member."

"Hiding," the Hyuuga said derisively.

"Waiting for an opportunity to strike," All three Natsukis corrected at the same time.

Kakashi chuckled. "Either way, it doesn't matter. You've only got one bell and you need two to pass. I won't be underestimating you this time around."

"We've got one bell, we'll get the other." The Hyuuga sneered. He charged at Kakashi, ignoring his teammates' cries of wait. Kakashi sunk into the ground before the Hyuuga could reach him. While the Hyuuga and all three Natsukis were looking around, Kakashi reached out and pulled the Hyuuga boy straight to the ground, lifting himself up in the process.

"Earth style: Headhunter jutsu."

All three Natsukis charged at him at the same time. Natsuki definitely made better use of the clones than her father did as a genin, though her father made up for his lack of skill with sheer number. Her clones also seemed to have decent stamina as well. Still, her taijutsu wasn't perfect. Kakashi managed to land a decisive blow to the gut of one Natsukis making it disappear in a puff of smoke. He twisted around and aimed a kick to another Natsuki only to have her disappear and his foot pop another balloon. This one splash some type of black gooey stuff on to his shoes and leg. He tried to lift his right foot, but he only managed a few inches.

Bright side...he had discovered her substitution jutsu's weakness. Downside, he was left fighting with one foot immobilized and getting more tired the longer he fought. Kakashi quickly dispatched the Natsuki he was currently fighting and barely managed to turn (stupid goo) as the Natsuki who had substituted previously charged at him with her kunai. Kakashi pulled out his own kunai and the two kunai's clashed. Natsuki threw a punch with her other hand which Kakashi caught. The girl shifted her fingers so she was now tightly clutching his hand. Then she dropped her kunai, which surprised Kakashi so much that he didn't react as she wrapped her fingers around his wrist. Kakashi struggled to get free, but Natsuki held on with the same stubbornness as her father.

"Ushimoro! I've got him pinned! Get the bell!"

Kakashi finally noticed the short silver haired boy hiding behind a tree. The masked shinobi cursed. He'd forgotten about him.

"B-But I…"

"Hurry! I can't hold on forever!" Indeed, Kakashi noted, Natsuki strength seemed to be giving in. Even with low chakra, he still had the upper hand. It might have been because of his larger size, but strength training was something Natsuki-chan could work on. It was just something to consider…if her team passed of course.

"I-I can't," the boy whimpered.

"Oh come on Takeda!" Hyuuga said shouted. Kakashi blinked and looked at the head on ground still struggling to get free. The boy's Byakugan was activated. "Stop being a coward! Kakashi's immobilized and his chakra's low! He's exhausted! Just get the damn bell!"

When the boy still hadn't moved, the Hyuuga screamed. "Move, damn you!"

The boy swallowed and pulled out a kunai with trembling fingers. Then he started to run forward.

"Too late," Kakashi smirked and shoved Natsuki forward. As he fell forward, and she backward, he hooked her leg with his free one and pressed his forearm against her neck, immobilizing her. Wresting his other arm from her grip, he threw the kunai at the boy running at him. It missed because of his awkward angle, but the boy hesitated, and that was all the time he needed. Kakashi quickly performed a one handed seal. "Magen: Narakumi no jutsu."

The boy's face shifted to one of horror and he dropped his kunai.

"Snap out of it!" the Hyuuga boy yelled as if his teammate could somehow magically hear him. "It's just a genjutsu! Takeda!"

"What happened to him?" Natsuki gasped.

Kakashi performed a small fireball jutsu, slowly melting the gooey stuff from his foot. "It's a genjutsu that shows an illusion of the targets worst fear."

Then he jumped back, allowing Natsuki to struggle to her feet. Kakashi picked up the silver haired boy and threw him over his shoulders. "His hesitation just cost his team the victory so he's the weakest link. He'll be tied to the stump in training field 7 for the remainder of the test…which isn't much". Kakashi pulled out a watch from his pocket. "You've only got twenty minutes to complete the exam. Have fun!"

And then Kakashi was gone.

* * *

3:26pm

Natsuki groaned as she lay on her back. She'd just spent six minutes speed digging Jin out of the ground and she was exhausted.

Jin dusted the dirt off his clothes. "Well, that was a failure."

"No, kidding," Natsuki said, too tired to be sarcastic. "We've got less than fifteen minutes to get the other bell."

"Dammit!" Jin punched a tree. "We were so close!"

"It's still not over," Natsuki sat up and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to relax her muscles. "As long as the exam is not over we can still win."

Jin glared at her. "On what basis do you say that?"

"No basis," Natsuki said her eyes still closed. "I just don't like giving up. If I'm going to fail I want to say I tried my absolute best. Besides, there's still a chance."

Jin stared at her disbelievingly.

"I took a gamble when I entered the strength contest with him. My physical strength has always been my weakest aspect. It's the reason I'm only proficient in taijutsu. Yet despite this, I was able to hold a jonin down for a few seconds. This tells me he's been more weakened than he pretends to be."

"He had one fifth of his usual chakra supply left," Jin confirmed in irritation.

"Kakashi's probably washed the chakra absorbing substance off by now; so we can't expect the number to be lower," Natsuki said thoughtfully. "And he's also shown decent taijutsu even though he's that low on chakra."

Then she opened her eyes, a mischievous look on her face. "I think I may have a plan." Then she turned to Jin with a sheepish look. "But it requires that we free Ushimoro from the stump."

Jin's pale eyes widened comically. "Are you crazy? We'll be disqualified!"

"Only if we are caught," Natsuki retorted. "Some rules have to be broken in order to win. You want to win don't you?"

Jin gave her an angry look. "It's better this way. Have you forgotten that only two of us get to become genin? With Takeda still around all, three of us would have to fight for the bells. Kakashi's doing us a favor by eliminating the weakest of us. Why should we risk ourselves to aid him?"

"We couldn't beat Kakashi with the three of us and you think we can beat him with two?"Natsuki asked sarcastically. "We need Ushimoro. Our team will fail unless we have both bells. It's better to focus on getting the bell first then decide who gets a bell later. "

"Explain to me how freeing Takeda is going to help us," Jin demanded derisively.

"He's an unexpected factor," Natsuki explained. "Kakashi's got us beat so he's probably arrogant right now. He won't think that anyone would willingly break his rules. By having a hidden card, we have the advantage. It'll only take one moment of surprise to get the bell, just like when we got the first one."

Jin shook his head. "You're forgetting the fact that Takeda was the reason we failed to get the last bell. If he hadn't been such a coward the exam would be over by now! There's a reason he was tied to the stump. He's useless."

"He is not useless! He helped us lure Kakashi out. We have to have faith in him if we want to win. There's no other way."

"I still think we'd be better off finding Kakashi and challenging him one more time," Jin insisted. "I won't fall for his headhunter jutsu this time."

"Think logically," Natsuki pleaded. "I'm exhausted from sparing him and can't make any more combat clones as I've reached my max for today. You're tired from sparring with him too. Plus you've been using your Byakugan the entire time to monitor Kakashi's chakra."

Jin opened his mouth, but Natsuki silenced it with a glare. "Don't deny it. You didn't even have the strength to dig yourself out of the cruddy ground."

Natsuki waited for Jin to stop grumbling before continuing. "At this rate our chances of stealing the bell from Kakashi before the time limit is low even with his low chakra supply. And let's not forget the other students. We are in a competition with the other teams as well. By weakening Kakashi, we've given them an advantage. We need an advantage of our own to balance out and having a third member will do that. If cheating is the only way then so be it. We're wasting time by arguing about this."

"Fine," Jin grounded out. "Since we're going to fail anyway it wouldn't matter whether we follow your insane plan or not. Let's just get going. We have little over ten minutes left."

"We're not going to fail," Natsuki said confidently.

Jin sighed. "So shall we go together to free, Takeda? I'll keep an eye out for Kakashi with my Byakugan."

Natsuki shook her head. "It's been about ten minutes since Kakashi took Ushimoro back to training field 7. I doubt he'll stay in one place for long with all the students looking for him. I need you to find Kakashi using your Byakugan and distract him. Keep other students from taking the bell as well. If I'm right, he'll be hidden in the densest part of the forest. In his current condition, I doubt he'll be looking for a fight."

Jin nodded.

"Oh and take these guys with you," Natsuki made a couple of hand seals and five clones of her appeared.

"I thought you said you couldn't make anymore,"

"I can't make anymore that can fight," Natsuki corrected. "They can't perform any jutsu and their stamina's so low that it'll only take one hit for them to disappear. However, that doesn't mean that they aren't useful. They've still got my cleverness."

The clones grinned at each other. Then they each gave Jin a thumbs up sign. Jin rolled his eyes. "Anything else?"

"Nope, let's do this." Natsuki said as she sunk into the ground.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Hehe, Natsuki's team has 10 minutes left. Next chap is the conclusion of Kakashi's bell testxD


End file.
